DGCA, COPS to probe Ratnagiri chopper landing

A city-bound private helicopter pilot faces suspension and will be questioned by the police after he violated safety regulations and made an unscheduled landing at a Ratnagiri beach on Saturday evening.

A city-bound private helicopter pilot faces suspension and will be questioned by the police after he violated safety regulations and made an unscheduled landing at a Ratnagiri beach on Saturday evening.

While the DGCA said that Captain DS Nayyar, the chopper's pilot, would be suspended pending an inquiry, the Maharashtra ATS is also expected to probe the incident.

The chopper belongs to Global Vectra Helicorp Ltd (GVHL), a Juhu-based private charter company, and was carrying four people from a film shoot in Belgaum and had a movie camera mounted on it.

A GVHL spokesperson said the chopper landed in Ratnagiri due to rain and poor visibility, and to avoid damage to a camera mounted on the chopper's nose.